Mosaicked Feelings

XXXIII: The Help I Didn't Get

To say I was completely baffled would've been an understatement.

I blinked once, and then twice, in pure astonishment, trying to make sense of his words.

"It's still the chapter of the same story," I comprehended, acknowledging Hayden's perspective of cliffhangers being the end of something bad.

"I just kinda meant it in the, 'the higher your problems seem to peak, the higher the chances are of it ending', way," He quoted while shrugging nonchalantly. Somehow whatever he said made sense, and I was deprived of a relevant answer.

"Am I supposed to feel better because of it?" I asked back, unsure and feeling dumb.

"I just want you to know that it'll be okay. It won't last forever," Hayden assured, affirming me with all the goodness and the brighter side of life, and that he was here for me no matter what would happen. I wasn't half convinced by his word but I took it. He had to leave after Mum had knocked on the door, all of a sudden wanting to check up on me if I was eating right and doing okay.

Only if she'd believed in what I had to say, probably it would be easier for me instead.

As soon as she left -- right after Hayden did -- and the clock struck midnight, I quietly tiptoed out of my room. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I wanted to be proven wrong, over the fact that Edward would have to resort to such lengths to persuade Mum. I instantly had a strong gut feeling that there were some bad vibes from the kitchen. While I made my way out, my eyes caught a glimpse of the fan as I studied the living room, and that was left turned on. I slowly walked towards the other room -- which was Mum's bedroom -- and carefully peeked beneath the door opening. It was inwardly dark and silent, indicating she was already asleep.

I stepped towards the kitchen, in slight fright, and quietly begun searching the cabinets, opening and closing the wooden doors, to find any sign of the box of medicine Edward must have given to Mum and that she might've intaken, to be behaving like that.

I finally resorted to the wooden shelves in the corner instead, and my fumbling fingers felt a small box jiggle with the sound of pills and the crinkly foil of the medicine wrapping. I took it out, and hastily scrabbled about in the box, searching for any new packet of pills. There was a small paper bag inside the big box, indicating it was recently brought and I unwrapped it. There were two wrappers of medicine in them, and one of the pill foils was taken apart as if used.

I instantly knew this was the one Edward might have got her, and swiftly picked it out. I looked at the foiling of the wrapper, which already made me uneasy, at the sadistic intentions behind it. The pills inside of it had an odd colour, unlike a normal pill would have. Probably that's how curses worked and looked when such kind of jinxed objects would radiate negative vibes just from their mere presence.

I flipped the cover backwards and saw a slightly dead insect, more of what looked like an ant stuck to it. With a quick short gasp, the wrapper instantly fell on the floor from my hands as I backed away from it, in the oddness of its showing. As if the whole commotion alone wasn't enough strange, my eyes landed on the kitchen counter just below the shelf and then on the floor. A trail of dead ants followed from the frame, down to the counter and then to the floor, ending right before the kitchen entrance.

I slowly backed out from the scene, my eyes wide at the sickening sight. Plucking up the last bits of courage inside me, I picked the fallen pill wrapper in one swipe, and ran back to my room, closing the door shut behind me, whilst I heaved heavily to catch my breath. Moving about the dimly lit washroom, I decided to unwrap all the pills, and threw them into the toilet seat, flushing them away. And to finish off, I threw the wrapper outside of the small ventilation window as far as I could.